Ali Baba

Wow, really disappointing. Staff was rude, food was all clearly frozen/​pre-​made. Had kefta kebab, hummus, fatoush, and 2 bite-​sized meat pies. All of it was bland, soggy, tiny, and overpriced. $ 25 for that might be ok if it was really good, but it was really mediocre at best. I’ll never go back and am bummed out, this neighborhood really needs a good Mediterranean place but this is not it.

Came on a rainy day for lunch. Order the Ali Baba platter. Food was good. Service was quick. Great sit down place with groups. Cool table ordering system.

Wow, I completely forgot to write my review for this place. But a friend of mine recommended Ali Baba for catering for my family dinner. We ordered the falafel, which I remember being a nice crispy level. The dolma was so-​so, nothing compared to the beef-​stuffed dolma. Lastly, and most importantly, the meat was really good. The lamb, chicken, and kefta were all really well done, and a big hit at my family dinner. The prices were also incredibly reasonable, actually more than reasonable, so I would highly recommend it for your next family gathering.

I had lunch with Friend today we had kebab plate and kofte kebab and else we had dessert kunefee and with tea it’s not really good sorry giving u one star

Food is delicious, service is great. The way the whole restaurant is set up is very mellow and clean. I’ve been to others with similar food, but this one topped them all. Highly recommend

Cranky lady aside. The food is pretty great and at a very good price. Service in general is a little shaky here, but the food is good enough to make this a regular for anyone who appreciates med food. Also, this place has a little tablet on every table for you to order on so human contact is at a minimum anyways. Go here, the food is good. Hummus is excellent. Quarter chicken dark meat is amazing.

I ordered take out from here for lunch and got the Murjana’s Plate. Service was swift, but they forgot to give me the pita the plate comes with. The eggplant salad was really good, but how great would it be to eat my tabbouleh with some pita…

I had my 40^th birthday party at Ali Baba restaurant this weekend and I have to say the food was excellent, the hospitality was perfect, the owner and staff were very kind and generous. The place is beautifully decorated a middle Eastern theme. I’ve only eaten here once before I chose this venue for my party and its a diamond in the rough. I will continue bringing my family and friends here for delicious middle Eastern food and for the great service. I recommend this place to everyone.

Just got done eating at this place. Love it!!! There are some things that I thought could be better.
Pros:
Very clean
Great setup
Tablets on tables so you can order
Hummus and falafel are great!
Overall great food
Cons:
Service was a little ehh maybe because of the self order tablets
Drinks were never filled to the top
The white rice had no flavor
The meet is good but the pieces were a bit small
Large plate of hummus was almost $ 9– a little much
Cheese sticks are great but too small for the price
Overall I think this place is great. Food is great! I will definitely be returning here:) wish the location was different though.

Good taste food. Order and payment done via tablet so very convenient.
clean place and service was fast.

This review is for catering.
Delivery was a bit late — I received no call that it was running late, and I had to call in to inquire. But the real problem was the wraps being labeled «Combo 1, 2, 3». some with no labels at all, so there was no indication if it was either chicken, beef, falafel or veggie! Not on the wraps, not in the receipt, not in the online menu — how are we supposed to tell which is what? It caused a lot of unnecessary confusion and delayed getting people seated for the lunch meeting.

Nice place, friendly, food ended up being good. But only complaint was when I tried to redeem my yep coupon…
Why do you have a «free dessert» Unilocal coupon, and you «ran out of dessert?»
running out of dessert not the problem. At least offer us something else of equal value. My two cents. Basic customer service gap that can be fixed and add two stars to my rating.

Last dinner of our week-​long vacation. We’re staying at the SFO Holiday Inn and this was a 5 minute drive. Why eat at a chain when you can have food this good? The tabouli and baba were exceptional. We both had the evening’s special: stuffed eggplant. Yummy!

The best arabic food ever ever
Well organized. Testy food. Easy parking. Quiet environment
Murad aldobaee

Insta @ilovetaizcity

Hidden Mediterranean Gem is SF!
Ali Baba is basically a stand alone restaurant hidden around industrial companies and facilities. It is pretty much like any other mediterranean restaurants we have tried, but that’s a good thing because we’ve only had the best! I ordered the chicken shawarma wrap, which came out really delicious! I loved the ginormous warm pita wrap with tender meat and flavorful garlic spread. My bf ordered the chicken plate which is composed of grilled chicken laid on top of a bed to creamy hummus. The dish did not come with rice, but it did come with a basket of pita bread. The only thing I would suggest is that I wished this place heated up their pita bread because I love my bread warm! Also, Don’t forget to check in on Unilocal!They offer free dessert! :) We got to choose from a variety of desserts. Eventually, we chose this sweet cheesy thing that was topped with this orange-​y sweet shred of what appears to be either carrot shred or coconut. It was nothing we have ever tried before. I really enjoyed my experience at Ali Baba!

It’s not table service — you order at the counter.
The staff was nice while we sat around for 20 minutes waiting for our entire party to arrive.
The food was okay — most of it was a bit on the dry side. I tasted everything from the Chicken Shawerma, beef kabob plate, chicken kabob plate and Kassem’s Plate (which is a combo of beef and lamb). The salads I ordered for appetizers were fine.
Given the reviews I was hoping for better food. I’m familiar enough with Mediterranean cuisine to have found this disappointing. Mostly though — I was treating some out of town guests to dinner and was embarrassed that the entrée food wasn’t better.

The coolest ordering system I’ve ever seen.
At each table is a touch-​screen device (similar to a tablet) that lets you peruse the menu, complete with pictures, and transmit your order directly to the kitchen. At the end of the meal, you can pay by swiping your card through the tablet’s card reader. Great for technology lovers or people who are antisocial! Paper menus are also provided for the more traditional diner.
It’s often considered rude to be on your screens during a meal, but here you can get away with it. The tablet has a bunch of games that will keep everyone at your table entertained. Is your head full of eclectic and obscure facts? Try a trivia game. Think you know your significant other too well? Try a couples quiz!
But how is the food? Oh, right, the food. I ordered the Kassem’s Plate ($ 11.35), beef or chicken (I chose chicken) shawerma with rice and salad. However instead of rice, I was given a small dish of hummus; no complaints there. The chicken was tender and flavorful, the tabouleh tasted fresh and the hummus was decent.
The wife got the Ali Baba’s Plate ($ 10.95), beef or chicken shawerma (she chose beef) over a larger amount of hummus.
Portion sizes were a bit small and left us hungry, so we ordered a side of garlic potatoes for $ 4.25. It was only after we’d left the restaurant that we realized why we’d hadn’t gotten full — both of our plates were supposed to come with pita bread, but apparently we’d been too distracted by the fun tablet games that we forgot all about it, and apparently our waitress forgot about it too!

First off, surprised to find good Mediterranean restaurant in this area, the industrial entrails of SSF.
Second, nice place with good vibe, bathrooms clean and decorated over the top.
Weird way of ordering… Tablet on table (!) or at counter. I chose counter, the young lady was friendly and helpful though a little spacey (made part of my meal to go). She was easy on the eyes and laughed at herself, all was forgiven easily.
Got the Ali Baba plate with the free Unilocal dessert (baklava). $ 11.94 plus tip.
Pita ok, average. Hummus was smooth and silky, well blended and though not super-​flavorful it was excellent by my standards. Lamb meat was seasoned alright, though a bit dry. Their hot sauce fixed any blandness that came up for me. Pistachio baklava had a «full» mouth feel to it, though it tasted a little stale to me and somewhat moister than usual.
I have mixed feelings on this place. Love the décor and laid-​back atmosphere, the location is excellent for my travels, and the food is much better than some other Mediterranean places in the area. I visited between lunch and dinner so I’m guessing the food is better tended to during the busy hours. Can’t complain too much about a free baklava, but hope it was unusually older than they normally serve them as I may have said something if I paid for it. All-​in-​all worthy of a repeat visit before establishing a baseline…

Very friendly service. Great atmosphere. The chicken shawarma wrap was fantastic. I eat it so fast I forgot to take a pic.
Their hummus was very different & a bit too acidic for my liking.

Eek, methinks not indeed.
This restaurant is located along San Mateo Avenue where there’s a bunch of factories and businesses that kind of make this place stick out. It’s easy to get to and easy to spot along the road and there’s a small parking lot for it right out front.
The inside of the restaurant has a good amount of tables available and on each table is a machine that you can use to order food or play games. If not, then you can just walk up to the cash register to order your food.
Service here was alright. Not much to brag about. My cousin and I were noticed, a lady took our order, and then we were left to go get a table and wait for our order. I ordered their ¼ chicken that comes with pita bread and let me just say– it was all a bummer. The chicken, while it looked delicious on the outside, the inside was cold and tasteless. Much like the pita bread. And my cousin got one of their gyros and an iced tea. The iced tea was bland and depressing. Seriously, 99% of the drink was still in the cup when we left.
Overall, meh. Not gonna bother with this place again. There’s better food out there.